DMPS Announces 2011 Advanced Placement Scholars; Roosevelt Grad Named State AP Scholar for Iowa
One hundred and twenty-nine Des Moines Public Schools students, representing all five of the district’s high schools, have been identified as Advanced Placement (AP) Scholars for 2011. Among the honorees are 19 National AP Scholars as well as this year’s male State AP Scholar for Iowa. Other awards include AP Scholars, AP Scholars with Honors, and AP Scholars with Distinction.
“Our students continue to challenge themselves with rigorous coursework, and it is impressive to see their work recognized with an honor such as the AP scholar award,” said Dr. Nancy Sebring, superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools. “Today, hundreds of high school students throughout Des Moines are now taking AP classes thanks to our efforts to expand this program to every high school in the district.”
The College Board annually releases the AP Scholars list for each school district following the results of the Spring Advanced Placement testing.
Each year, the College Board names one male and one female State AP Scholar to recognize the students with the highest average score on Advanced Placement exams. This year’s winner of the male State AP Scholar for Iowa is Joel Schneider, a 2011 Roosevelt High School graduate now attending the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
To earn the prestigious AP National Scholar Award a student must take eight or more AP exams and receive a near perfect score of four or higher (on a scale of 1-5) on each exam. Recipients of the AP National Scholar Award for 2011 are:
| Name | High School |
| Jack Bequeaith | Roosevelt High School |
| Molly Bird | Roosevelt (Northwestern University) |
| William Bolte | Hoover (Wooster College) |
| Wesley Clark | Roosevelt (Eckerd College) |
| Sarah Eikenberry | Roosevelt (UNI) |
| Joseph Harper | Lincoln (Iowa State University) |
| Kayleigh Hauri | Roosevelt High School |
| Tam Le | Roosevelt (Carnegie Mellon University) |
| Matthew MacKay | Roosevelt High School |
| Megan Mansfield | Roosevelt High School |
| James Nassif | Roosevelt (University of Wisconsin) |
| Alysa Olson | Lincoln (UNI) |
| Ian Pierson | Hoover (University of Minnesota) |
| Kevin Porter | Roosevelt (Purdue University) |
| Varun Ramaswamy | Roosevelt (MIT) |
| Joel Schneider | Roosevelt (MIT) |
| Anna Walker | Roosevelt (University of Iowa) |
| Jason Walsh | Roosevelt (Case Western University) |
| Conor Wells | Roosevelt (Drake University) |
NOTE: The above students are either members of the Class of 2011 or current high school seniors.
In addition to Advanced Placement courses offered at Central Academy, Des Moines Public Schools is currently in the process of making significant expansions in the AP courses offered at all five of the district’s comprehensive high schools. Between this year and 2014, each high school in Des Moines will begin offering a wider range of AP courses in social studies, science, English and mathematics.
The College Board’s mission is to connect students to college success and opportunity. In addition to the Advanced Placement program, its programs include the SAT college entrance exam and the PSAT/NMSQ. Additional information regarding the Advanced Placement Program is available at www.collegeboard.com.